Page 29 - ALG Issue 3 2014

QPotato Blight
Potato blight has been
found on a plot on our North Bournemouth Site. Any advice? N. Godfrey
AMy advice would be to cut down the foliage on remaining crops to soil level before blight is apparent on them and drag soil over the tops of the stalks. Put foliage on compost heap or better still recycle through council schemes.
Allium Leaf- QMining Fly
This year all the crops of onions and
shallots on our site have been attacked by the Allium Leaf-Mining Fly. This is the first year we have suffered to this degree, although I have been notified of two plot holders who believe it caused damage to their leeks last year. What is your advice for dealing with this? G. Stuart, Belper
AMany gardeners are now having serious problems with the allium leaf miner
and leek moth attacking their crops. Up
until a few years ago these two pests were mostly confined to the southern and eastern counties but now they are progressively working their way across the country. Only recently allium leaf miner was found on leek plants in the Midlands. All members of the allium family are vulnerable to attack from these pests. In both cases the symptoms appear to be similar. First of all white patches (leek moth) or lines of white dots (leaf miner) appear on the foliage. In the case of the leek moth the white patches are an indication
of caterpillar damage following on from
their eating and damaging the tissue of
the leaves. The lines of white dots on the leaves are a sign that the female leaf miner has arrived on the plant. She punctures
the leaves to feed off the sap before she begins to lay her eggs. Both pests will cause secondary damage which will develop into fungal and bacterial infections often leading to the plants rotting. In some instances young leek plants may be killed.
Chemical control is unavailable to the amateur gardener. Covering the crop with horticultural fleece may help. Look for the cocoons and physically squash them. Using crop rotations, raising plants under cover before transplanting the young leeks in the open ground may help. Avoid accepting gifts of plants or buying plants from other sources to reduce the risk of introducing the pest into your garden. Keep the growing site scrupulously clean at all times.
The NAS website Growing Advice pages have a downloadable factsheet on this issue.
IT’S
YOUR
MAGAZINE!
A big thank you to all of you who wrote in with stories about your plot and experiences of chicken keeping. We hope you enjoy reading the articles in this issue. Please keep sending in “You and your allotment” stories and for ALG 4 we would love to hear
about the following:
Beekeeping on allotments
Have you set up a hive on your plot or have a few of you got together to set up an apiary on the site? Please write in to tell us about the experience.
Cost savings
What do you do to keep costs down on the plot? Send in your cost saving and recycling tips to share with fellow allotment holders!
29
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Order from our web shop or pop in and see our friendly team, open 7 days a week,
For an unrivalled collection of Heritage fruit trees & soft fruits Grow at Brogdale, Brogdale Road, Faversham Kent ME13 8XZ 01795 531888 or email: fruit@brogdaleonline.co.uk
www. brogdaleonline.co.uk
ALLOTMENT & LEISURE GARDENER • Issue32014
Inside: Chickens – p20
• AGM – p31 • Pumpkins Competition –p35